Movember aims to whisker away prostate cancer

Students from the USC School of Social Work's San Diego Academic Center show off their fledgling moustaches as part of the Movember movement, which raises awareness of prostate and testicular cancer. Photo by Jamie Lytle

Students from the USC School of Social Work's San Diego Academic Center show off their fledgling moustaches as part of the Movember movement, which raises awareness of prostate and testicular cancer. Photo by Jamie Lytle

Students from the USC School of Social Work's San Diego Academic Center show off their fledgling moustaches as part of the Movember movement, which raises awareness of prostate and testicular cancer. Photo by Jamie Lytle

Deborah Sullivan Brennan • U-T

To help address pressing men’s health issues, social worker Rick Newmyer put his dignity and public image on the line.

The adjunct lecturer at the USC School of Social Work’s San Diego Academic Center volunteered to combat prostate and testicular cancer by growing a mustache for the “Movember” movement.

The school hosted a men’s health forum Saturday in Rancho Bernardo, expanding the cancer focus to include nutrition and exercise, emotional well-being and mental health.

Besides supporting prostate cancer research and treatment, they hope to start conversations about men’s health by provoking the question: “What is that thing on your face?”

Newmyer sported the wispy beginnings of a straight blond mustache that he described as “cop style,” although he acknowledged that it could also flag him as a delinquent.

“Right now I look like the kid in the liquor store parking lot who wants you to buy him beer,” he joked.

On that note, Chad Little, fund development director for the organization Pints for Prostates, described how he visits brewpubs and festivals to promote prostate screenings “through the universal language of beer.”

This year the group enlisted Stone Brewing founder Greg Koch to shave his infamously shaggy beard in favor of a mustache that he lamented in a blog would “probably be reminiscent of a bad ‘70s album cover.”

San Diego Councilman Mark Kersey, on the other hand, told forum participants that he welcomed Movember as a chance to avoid shaving, but wondered why they didn’t choose to hold the event in “Manuary.”

The Movember movement began as a gag in Australia in 2003, when several mates wondered what had happened to mustaches, and vowed to bring them back.

They didn’t restore the mustache as a style icon, but they found it to be an excellent fundraising and educational tool. On the first of November, mo-bros around the world shave their faces clean and then spend the month growing a mustache.

It’s crucial to get the word out, speakers said, because prostate cancer affects one in six men. In 2013, an estimated 238,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, and 30,000 will die from it, said Andy Leonetti, a representative for Movember.

Although it’s highly treatable when detected early and is more prevalent than breast cancer is among women, prostate cancer has lagged in public awareness.

That’s partly because of the intimate nature of the disease, and the uncomfortable exam required to detect it. It’s also because many men are indifferent to their health and dread doctor visits, speakers said.

“I don’t know anybody who loves going to the doctor, but I know a lot of men who avoid it at all cost,” Newmyer said. “There has to be a bone sticking out of their skin before they’ll go.”

Although men tend to value physical strength, they may also neglect exercise, eat poorly or drown their sorrows in alcohol, speakers said. Those behaviors not only cause personal problems but also increase their risks for conditions including prostate cancer.

Several students who joined the cause said the mustache campaign touched on some of the more sensitive issues in men’s lives. What are my lifetime health risks? Can I muster enough facial hair this month? Will I go with a Fu Manchu or a trucker?

Student Gino Montessi didn’t appear to be growing a mustache, but he gave assurances that he’s working on it.

“It just happens that I tend to take forever,” he said. “So by the end of November I’ll have whiskers.”

Student Angel Perez, whose father always wore a mustache, said he associates the style with machismo and also with leftover food crumbs. That left him hesitant to grow his own, but he figures it’s worth it for a good cause.

“I’m going to try to do a handlebar,” he said.

Newmyer said he’s considering a Movember fundraising goal, and said he might warn prospective donors — including his wife — that he’ll keep the mustache indefinitely if they don’t pay up.